Making Amends
by Lady Archive
Summary: My idea of what happened after the series ended.  Zuko must go on a journey to find his mother and the world has a lot of repairs to make if balance is to be restored.  My first fanfic so please let me know what you think.
1. Parting Ways

The sun streaming through the window woke Zuko, he had gotten used to finding himself back in his room above the Jasmine Dragon. Soon he remembered that a week ago had been the celebration of the Earth King's return and, of course, the people responsible for ending the war had been invited. Aang had suggested they all stay in the city and relax for a while, no one had moved into the house he, Katara, Sokka, and Toph had stayed in and they had room for Suki as well, they offered Zuko to stay there but he had decided to stay with Uncle in his tea shop.

He enjoyed the week, he knew there was a lot of work ahead of them so a chance to relax and celebrate what they had accomplished had been a very good idea but he still had one more job to do before he could help restore the world and it had already been delayed longer than he expected. He put on clothes fitting the style of the Earth Kingdom; he would travel faster as just another traveler than as Fire Lord Zuko, and began packing the supplies he would need.

He had just finished packing when Uncle came into his room. "All ready?" He asked. Zuko nodded as he lifted his bag of supplies, he had tried to keep it light but he was glad he had bought an ostrich-horse to ride. "Are you sure you want to go alone?"

"I'm sure, it's not that far and I know you have plenty of work to do here." Zuko answered. "I just hope she hasn't moved again." He sighed. Ozai had said that the last he knew of, Ursa had gone to a small village that had been one of the first Fire Nation colonies in the Earth Kingdom after her banishment but when Zuko arrived there she was nowhere to be found. Just when he had been ready to assume his father had lied, which would not have surprised him, Zuko ran into a woman who had lived next door to her for a few years but they said she moved to an Earth Kingdom village east of Ba Sing Se.

"You will find her," Iroh said resting an encouraging hand on Zuko's shoulder. "I'm sure she will come back to the Fire Nation once word about your pardons reaches her."

Zuko was not so sure, when he asked the woman who told him about his mother's move why she left, she answered that Ursa had said something about not feeling at home there. He had shared the woman's confusion about why someone who had lived her entire life in the mainland of the Fire Nation would expect to feel more at home on the other side of the world in the Earth Kingdom than in a colony of her homeland, unless she liked life in the Earth Kingdom better. "She might want to stay, she has been living there for years after all, but I want to see her again." He had no intention of forcing his mother to come back, though he hoped she would want to, but after years of thinking she was dead he had to see her again.

"It might take her longer than the others to get everything in order, but if I know my sister-in-law she will want to come back." Iroh assured his nephew. Just then they heard familiar voices downstairs in the shop.

They both went down the stairs to see Aang, Katara, Sokka, Suki, and Toph standing at the door of the shop. "We thought we'd wish you good luck on your trip, and since we're all leaving the city today we might as well go together." Aang said. Zuko had told them about his plan to find his mother, he felt badly since he knew there was so much work to do that they would need his help with, but they all seemed to understand.

"Thanks, and I'll let you know as soon as I get back so we can get to work." As one of the few Nations that had suffered the least from the war, and caused the damage in the others, he figured the Fire Nation would have to support most of the efforts to rebuild.

"You've done everything we needed so far." Aang told him. "We need to get an idea of the damage done before we can figure out what else is needed." Zuko had returned all the Fire Nation colonies to their original nations though he had continued trade between them and the Fire Nation in order to help support the Earth Kingdom's economy, hopefully trade would resume between all the nations soon.

"But you will have to introduce us to your mother once you've found her." Katara added.

"Yeah, it'll be nice to meet the parent that isn't evil." Sokka added teasingly.

"Well, we had better get going." Suki pointed out, they had all planned to leave the city early so they could get back to their homes and figuring out how to repair the world.

"All aboard for another flying trip." Toph added, somewhat unenthusiastically.

It did not take long for Appa to reach the Outer Wall where Zuko had arranged for an ostrich-horse to be held for him. He waved from the ground as Appa flew away carrying the others to their own destinations. Paying the man who had kept the animal for him, guiltily remembering how he had acquired the last ostrich-horse he had ridden and reminding himself to visit that little village and repay the family, Zuko made his way eastward.


	2. Living With the Past

_Ursa struggled to maintain her composure, there was something she was missing, it was all a misunderstanding. It had to be. Azulon was a hard man, he was strict and demanding, but not even he could be serious about _this. _She had never in all her years in court heard the man tell a joke but this had to be one, she could live with her father-in-law having a sick sense of humor. She would talk to him and he would say it was all a mistake, he would call her foolish for being so worried in the condescending tone he had mastered and say that of course he did not expect Ozai to go through with it. He might even scold Ozai for even considering the idea, it did not matter that Ozai was a full grown man with two children of his own; Fire Lord Azulon would think nothing of scolding his son as if the prince were still a child. _

_"I need to speak to Fire Lord Azulon, privately." She told the guard outside the Fire Lord's chamber. She let her voice reveal how serious the situation was but made sure she sounded calm and composed instead of the panic she truly felt, as if she had just received some word from the front that was to be kept confidential and only known to members of the royal family. With what happened in Ba Sing Se, a major loss in the war effort as well as the death of the second in line for the throne, no one would think twice. It probably only took a few seconds for the guard to enter the chamber and leave followed by the servants that were waiting on the Fire Lord but it felt like an eternity to Ursa. She had expected the servants to wait outside the door but instead they continued down the hall and were followed by the guards, so Azulan wanted to make sure their conversation was kept completely private. Does he know what I've come to talk about? She wondered, the thought made her more nervous, if he had not been serious about his demand then why would he expect her to want a private conversation about it. Pushing the thought away she strode into the chamber._

_"I should have known you would have something to say about this." Azulon said, he sat at a chair beside a large table with a map spread across. The map was full of marks, tracking the progress of the army and marking towns that had been colonized. There were also a few other papers of the table, one of which looked as if Azulon had just written it before she arrived. _

_"I don't want to believe you would seriously ask Ozai to do this. I agree, he was wrong to suggest that he should be given Iroh's birthright but Zuko is innocent." Ursa said, her fear changing to determination, she would not let this happen and anyone who thought Princess Ursa of the Fire Nation was going to sit by and let her child be hurt was insane. _

_"Innocent." Azulon repeated the word as if tasting it. "Yes, I suppose he is." Ursa wanted to feel relief, the Fire Lord was agreeing with her, wasn't he? Still, there was something in his voice that made her feel it was too soon to let her guard down. "But there is more to it than that. Innocence can be taken care of; the proper education can rid a child of innocence and naivety. There is something else in the boy or perhaps what is not in him; he lacks the ambition necessary to continue the war successfully. My father had to deal with men in his council that were not willing to make the sacrifices necessary to achieve the greatness the Fire Nation deserves." _

_Ursa knew what he was talking about, her mother told her things about Fire Nation history that none of the history books Ursa had ever read even mentioned. About generals in the military who opposed the eradication of the Air Nomads when Fire Lord Sozin suggested it as a way to prevent the Avatar from stopping the Fire Nations conquest. They were all demoted, called cowards and shamed into leaving the capital city to find small villages to live._

_"Zuko is a child; he won't need to think about how to lead a war for many years." Whether he inherited the throne or not, though the former was much more likely now that Lu Ten had died, Ursa knew he would be expected to aid the war effort. She did not like it, especially when she thought about her nephew, the friendly young man she would never see again, it was not a fate she wanted for her son but she had come to terms with it and still hoped the war would end before Zuko was old enough to take an active role. The loss of Ba Sing Se was a bit of a disappointment in that regard, if they had conquered it the entire Earth Kingdom would have followed soon after. But how could any parent be expected to keep up a siege when they had just lost their only child?_

_"Princess Azula is even younger and she shows greater promise as a leader." Azulon stated coldly. Azula, her little girl, Ursa scowled at Azulon's comment hating how he and Ozai encouraged what Ursa saw as her own personal torment. That thing, that they both admired, was consuming her baby girl, twisting the child into something cruel and uncaring. It was something inside Azula, something Ursa was unable to protect her from, a shadow creeping over her that Ursa was powerless to stop. It hurt to watch, but that was all she could do, she tried to encourage Zuko to spend time with Azula, she tried to make it sound like she just thought brothers and sisters should spend time with each other but her real motive of encouraging the two to play together was the hope that Zuko might rub off on Azula, maybe his willingness to work hard and never give up and his kindness would help Azula fight the thing that was trying to consume her. Azulon continued speaking, ignoring Ursa's disapproving look. "Ozai was wrong to suggest I betray my first born son, but he was right that his line has greater potential. And after some consideration, I had to admit it showed great ambition for him to openly suggest such a thing. Ozai must make a choice, his first born son or the throne. Iroh has proved that such pain is too much for him, he gave up the siege because he was not willing to make certain sacrifices. If Ozai puts power over family he will prove that he will do whatever necessary to bring power to his nation."_

_Ursa stood staring at the man, he was serious, he wanted Ozai to kill Zuko. She could not believe it. "He's your grandson!" She fought to keep tears from her eyes as she tried to make Azulan see reason. She did not bother to hope that Ozai would make the right choice; she knew he would do anything to become the Fire Lord, so she had to make Azulan change his mind._

_"What is a grandson but an heir? Princess Azula pleases me as an heir more than Prince Zuko, without him Ozai can inherit the throne, he will rule well doing all he can to advance the war and then Azula will inherit the throne from him and follow in his footsteps, just as Ozai will follow in mine and I have followed in my father's."_

_"So you've told Ozai that he has to kill his own son if he wants to inherit the throne and then Azula can inherit it from him?" Ursa asked trying to get a hold of reality to figure out what she could do, the problem was this was madness and nowhere near reality._

_"I have told Ozai that I will send my revised will to the Fire Sages if he sacrifices his son." With that he lifted the paper on his table, Ursa skimmed over it quickly. It simply stated that Azulon wished for his second son to succeed him upon the time of his death, there was no caveat or requirement mentioned, the only reason the Fire Sages would question it was because it lacked the Fire Lord's seal. _Of course, he doesn't want the people to find out that he had even suggested that his own grandson be murdered so that part is just a spoken agreement, something that will never make it into the history books. _Ursa thought to herself; in a way, that was better because it would be easier to undo something that was never actually made official and it explained why he had sent the guards and servants away to make sure they would not overhear the conversation. Everyone in court knew once a secret reached a few servants it would not be secret for very long. _

_"I won't let you do this." She said, her voice hard and uncompromising. "It won't happen."_

_"There is nothing you can do, Princess Ursa." He replied she could hear the way he said 'princess' he was reminding her of her place, that he outranked her. "Your son will die and the Fire Nation will be assured of having a line of strong leaders."_

_Ursa did not even hear the last part of his sentence; it did not matte; nothing mattered except the fact that he had threatened her child. She did not care that he was her father-in-law or the grandfather of her children and she certainly did not care that he was the Fire Lord. No one threatened her children! Without thinking she slapped him hard across the face, the old man stumbled back, surprised by the force of her strike. He backed into the table, the corner of it meeting his back causing him to fall and flipping the table over so that everything on it scattered across the floor._

Ursa sat bolt upright in her bed, no matter how many times she had the dream it still disturbed her. _It worked out for the best_. She tried to let the thought comfort her; it had assured Zuko's safety. But it also had meant that she could never see her children again, knowing they were safe helped, but it was not the same as being with them. Would she even recognize them if she saw them after all these years?

Knowing she would never get back to sleep, Ursa looked at the paper resting on her nightstand. It was an announcement that Fire Lord Zuko had declared the war over and that he and the Avatar would work to restore peace and balance to the world. Fire Lord Zuko. She was proud of him, it had taken a week just for that little detail to reach the small isolated village she had come to live in. Of course they heard that the war was over fairly quickly, but Ursa had been left to wonder how it had ended, she had been full of questions no one could answer, and few others would care about. Had the Fire Nation itself been attacked? The capital? What had become of the members of the royal family? The latest news had helped, it told her Zuko was safe, not just safe, he was the new Fire Lord and planned work to heal the world his predecessors had hurt but it mentioned nothing else.

She was proud of him, she had always believed Zuko could be a good leader. He had a strong sense of right and wrong, for the most part anyway. Living in the Earth Kingdom had shown Ursa how much of the things she had been taught, and had then allowed her children to be taught, had been pure propaganda. Still, if Zuko was going to heal the world then surely the skewed view of the world he had been raised on had not done too much damage. She had been afraid what would become of him, with Ozai clearly favoring Azula and her natural talnts and promoting the ruthless, sometimes sadistic, tendencies that Ursa would have liked to guide her daughter away from. She had feared that without her to praise his perseverance and pure heart he be susceptible to the same thing that was corrupting Azula. She could only hope he had remembered her last words to him, but whether he did or not this new bit of news suggested he was still her Zuko and the Fire Nation would benefit from his leadership. Still, she could not help but wonder what happened to Ozai, she had never been in love with the man her father had arranged for her to marry, but he was still her husband so she would have liked to know his fate. And what of Azula? Had she beaten that thing that Ursa had been forced to watch consume her child? She hoped so, but knew the chances were slim with Ozai always promoting it, he would have had the girl willingly surrender to it. Until more news reached her, she would just have to hope and continue for a little longer keeping her past a secret from the other villagers.


	3. Unexpected Meeting

** Sorry this took so long; I seemed to have a lot of trouble with this chapter. Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed! I really want to improve my writing and every bit of constructive criticism helps and it's nice to know people are reading and enjoying the story.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: the Last Airbender or any of the characters in it.**

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**After nearly a full day of riding Zuko arrived in a bustling town, though a closer look at the activity suggested that the people actually living in it were few. The streets were full of wagons and carriages loaded with goods and the inn was the largest building it had. Zuko guessed it was a stopping point for merchants travelling between other villages and Ba Sing Se, not to mention that a few people who had come to Ba Sing Se as refugees were now returning to their old homes.

After putting his ostrich-horse in a stable behind the inn, Zuko made arrangements to stay the night and ordered a meal for himself. Just as he finished his meal, Zuko noticed a young man walking with a slight limp enter the inn, followed by an older one. It only took a moment for Zuko to realize that he knew the elder man as Gansu, the farmer whose home he had stayed in while traveling as a fugitive in the Earth Kingdom. Zuko quickly tried to decide if he should greet the man, he and his family had given Zuko a place to stay when he had nothing, or if it would be better if he went unnoticed. He had not left the village on the best of terms to say the least; of course Gansu had left before that. Before he had time to decide Gansu appeared to have noticed him walking over to his table.

"Quite the coincidence seeing you here." He greeted Zuko with a cheerful tone. "Sensu and I are on our way home, it took some time but I finally managed to find him." Gansu added, gesturing to the young man beside him, he was probably only a year or two older than Zuko with brown hair and green eyes.

"Glad to see you're all right." Zuko said, gesturing for the two to sit as he remembered that Sensu had been limping, most likely from a battle wound. "I was there when your family got the news about your battalion." He added noticing that Sensu wore a slightly confused expression.

"I don't know if what Gow said about the survivors was true; I got a bad hit on the head and lost consciousness, guess the Fire Nation soldiers thought I was dead or just didn't notice me." Sensu replied. "When I woke up I was in a wagon and the driver said he was taking me to the nearest hospital."

"Though the nearest hospital was miles from the battle which is why it took me so long to find him." Gansu added. "I checked every one of the surrounding towns before I found the man that helped him and then he was in no state to make a long journey." Zuko nodded in understanding, he had hoped that bully soldier had been lying but unfortunately he knew of a handful of generals who had been known to deal with captured enemy soldiers cruelly.

"For what it's worth, the sort of generals who would do something like that are going to face the penalties." Zuko said he was not hiding who he was; he was just not sure how he should tell them so there was no reason not to show that he knew what was going on in the Fire Nation's government. Of course, the fact that the new Fire Lord had promised to administer justice for the wrongs done in the war was probably known to quite a few people in the Earth Kingdom anyway.

"The war's done a lot of damage, some damage that can't exactly be undone but it is good to know that we're going in the right direction to fix things." Sensu replied, Zuko noticed Sensu's eyes briefly focus on his scar. "Looks like you've seen some of the fighting yourself."

"Not exactly," Zuko answered, "at least not in the way you think." It was not the first time someone had assumed his scar had come from a Fire Nation attack; it was reasonable enough since then and now he was traveling in the Earth Kingdom and burns were probably fairly common among Earth Kingdom soldiers. "I never mentioned my name while I was staying with you. I didn't know what name to give; I had been using the name Lee, but that was your son's name." Zuko said, he owed it to them to explain who he was and now seemed the best time to do it. "My real name is Zuko."

"You mean…Fire Lord Zuko?" Gansu asked as he and his son stared at Zuko with expressions of confusion.

"Yes, though technically, when I met you I was Prince Zuko. I couldn't tell you then since I was a fugitive from my own nation and an enemy of yours."

"So it was true." Sensu's voice was barely loud enough for Zuko to hear. Zuko had been expecting them to be shocked, or maybe angry like the people in the village had been, but this reaction surprised him. "I thought it was just made up. I mean, it makes sense that during a war people would come up with stories to make the enemy nation seem even worse. I thought old Kazin just told us things like that so we would see all Fire Nation soldiers as evil so we wouldn't hold back in a fight, you know, if we were told a story about a boy being burned and banished by his own father it would make us see the Fire Nation as a country of monsters."

It took Zuko a moment to recognize the name as that of one of the men who trained the new recruits in the Fire Nation army. He had not thought much of it, not having known the man very well, but Zuko now realized that he had met with most of the people in the military but Kazin had not been among them, it was possible he had retired, but why would he have gone to a small Earth Kingdom village instead of Ember Island or somewhere else in the Fire Nation like most retired generals and nobles in need of a vacation. "How did he know about that?" Zuko asked, trying to figure out if it was the same man or just a strange coincidence. Zuko remembered an old man in their village who mentioned the story when Zuko had revealed his identity, he had been a little surprised that the man knew information the not even the crew members of his own ship had not known but there had been other things to be considered at the time.

"I never really thought about it, but now that you mention it I would have to say no." Gansu answered with a slight shrug. "I never heard a name like it in our village, but he was a refugee who came to the village a few years ago. He's a merchant so he comes and goes quite a bit, I don't think he was in the village during your stay unless he came back between when I went to look for Sensu and you continued on your way." Mentioning Zuko's stay in their village seemed to remind Gansu that he had unknowingly had someone from the Fire Nation, and the descendant of the people responsible for the war at that, living in his barn. "When did you leave, anyway?" The question seemed casual enough but Zuko could tell the farmer was trying to figure out how he should react to this new realization. Zuko was grateful he was not immediately mad at him, though he could not have blamed the man if he had reacted like his wife and younger son. Most likely, the fact that Zuko had helped to end the war and was now trying to repair the damage his predecessors had done was the main reason for this different reaction.

"Same day as you." Zuko answered, he could tell both Gansu and Sensu were curious for more details but he was unsure of how to explain the situation. "There was some trouble with those bully soldiers before I left, and I had to use firebending to beat him but hopefully he'll think before picking on the people in the village." Zuko was not sure how the soldiers would act after his fight with them, they might have just returned to their old ways as soon as he was gone but the fight might have taught them a lesson. If it was the latter then Zuko figured having revealed his identity to everyone in the village was worth it. "Of course, they should be put back in their place now that the real soldiers are returning." He added remembering that Gansu's wife, Sela, had mentioned that men he had fought were supposed to be protecting the village in the absence of its soldiers who had gone to war.

"I've heard about how you stood up to them, so I'm thankful for what you did for my family." Sensu seemed to have an easier time processing the information that his father did. "It'll be good to be home again."

"Speaking of which, we had better get some rest. The sooner we set out tomorrow the sooner we can get home, your mother and Lee are probably anxious about you." Gansu told his son.

"I won't keep you, then." Zuko said as the three of them rose from the table. "I just want to say I'm sorry for not telling you who I was and I'd appreciate it if you could tell that to Lee and your wife. I understand why they were angry when they found out but at the time I really didn't see any other choice."

"We'll tell them, and I'm sure they'll understand now that everything's worked out." Sensu assured him. "Nice meeting you, Fire Lord Zuko." He added, apparently the young man was now enjoying the idea though his father's expression suggested he was still trying to process everything.

"Thank you, and it was nice seeing the two of you." Zuko replied as they all left the main part of the inn and headed to their own rooms for a good nights rest.


	4. Changes

**Sorry this chapter took so long but I've had a lot of schoolwork lately which hasn't left much time for writing...hopefully it will lighten up soon. Thank you for reading and reviews always help.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender**

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"Do you _have _to leave when Father comes home?" The slight hurt in the little girl's voice made Ursa feel a pang of guilt, but it did not change her resolve.

"I haven't seen my family for a long time, Amber," she explained patiently. "It's been wonderful living here and I will miss you but I've been missing my own children a great deal and now that I can go back, I need to be with them."

At ten years old, Amber was a bright girl who understood what it was like to want to be with your family, Ursa could tell she understood and would not try to convince the woman to change her mind, even if she herself was not thrilled with the plan. "You'll write though, won't you?" She asked, her green eyes brightening slightly.

"Of course," Ursa assured her. "Messengers will be easier to find now that the war is over."

Satisfied with this answer Amber took a seat on the garden bench beside Ursa. "How come you were banished? I don't remember you ever saying why." She asked peering over at the paper on Ursa's lap. It was the latest notice about the wars end that had arrived that morning. The large print of the title declared; "Fire Lord Zuko Repeals Banishments".

Ursa hesitated; she had never told anyone in the village that she was part of the Fire Nation's royal family. As soon as they heard she was banished for treason they declared that any traitor of the Fire Nation was a friend of theirs, isolated though they were the people here understood that banishment from the Fire Nation usually meant having opposed the Fire Lord in some way or another which seemed like a good thing in the opinion of the Earth Kingdom citizens.

"It's a long story and I think your father should hear it first so it can wait until General Harchim comes home." Ursa answered, then noticing the child's look of disappointment she added, "But it involves me putting the Fire Lord's seal on a document to protect someone I care about."

Amber's eyes widened. "I can't believe you never told me this story!" She exclaimed. "It sounds much better than the made up bed time stories you have told."

Ursa sighed and gave the girl a look that reminded her to be patient, she would hear the whole story when her father came back and Ursa explained to him why she could no longer continue her job of watching his daughter, she had chosen the part of the story she was most comfortable with people knowing, and the most appropriate since Amber had asked for the reason Ursa was banished and Ursa considered that to be the main reason. Ozai said what she did that night had been treasonous but the accusation made little sense to Ursa. Killing Azulon was an accident and placing the seal on the revised will had gotten Ozai what he wanted, still Ursa could imagine that the fact that she could do such a thing might have unnerved Ozai. Maybe he was afraid she would do something like that to make her own decrees while he was the Fire Lord.

"This wouldn't have made a good bed time story," Ursa told her, Ursa's banishment had taught her that the real world, the realities of the war, were not what the Fire Nation nobility had been told. Similarly, Amber who had never left the small isolated village in her life had a very limited idea about what the war had done to the rest of the nations, her father kept his letters vague in what Ursa assumed was an attempt to protect his daughter from the bad in the world. Ursa could respect that and figured he would not want his daughter being put to bed with stories about death and betrayal. "Your father should return soon so you'll just have to be patient and then you can hear it after I've told him."

"I'll miss you." Amber said, apparently having accepted that no amount of pleading would convince Ursa to tell any more information which meant her thoughts had returned to the fact that her governess would be leaving.

"I'll miss you too." Ursa replied, she had become close to the girl but nothing would replace her own children. She needed to be with them, now that she could return to her homeland. Still she had a responsibility as the girl's caretaker to stay until the general returned. She would explain things to him, with the war over he would be free to spend time with his daughter so he would not need Ursa any longer.

Just then one of the maids came out to the garden and walked over to them. "Amber, a few of your friends are asking if you can play." She informed them, her tone did not suggest she was pleased about being a messenger for children despite the fact that it was a common occurrence during the summer. At this Amber turned with a pleading look to Ursa.

"All right, you can invite them to play here. I'll be in the house if you need anything." Ursa said, as long as the girl stayed on her family property or the neighbors she would not need constant supervision and Amber would know to come and get her if the children decided to play somewhere else.

The ten year old leapt from the bench and hurried to the front of the house to meet her friends. "I'd best get back to the kitchen." The maid said and turned to go inside the house.

"I'll join you." Ursa said rising from her seat, most likely Amber's friends would still be there by lunch time so the kitchen staff would have to prepare enough food for a few extra mouths. Thinking about returning home soon made Ursa realize how much her life had changed, Azula and Zuko's friends came to visit the castle fairly often when they were young, espeicially Azula's friends Mai and Ty Lee, and Ursa had instructed the servants to accommodate them whenever that occurred but as the daughter of a nobleman and a princess of the Fire Nation it never would have occurred to her to help with the work that entailed and now it was almost second nature. She certainly would not mind having more time to relax and do as she pleased, but she was just so used to helping with chores now she wondered if she might simply out of habit continue do chores when she returned to the Fire Nation.

Leaving the Fire Nation had exposed her to the realities of the war and that had changed much of her outlook on the world. She knew her children must have grown up a good deal over the years, and obviously Zuko had learned the truth about how terrible the war really was or he would not have ended it and been working to set things right, but what had caused the change in him? As she and the maid arrived in the kitchen Ursa let the thought fade away, it would be one of the many things she looked forward to talking about when she returned home.


End file.
